On 22 February 2018, the Counter-Terrorism Committee heldan informal joint meeting with the Security Council ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions Committee, and the Security Council Taliban Sanctions Committee, to receive a briefing by Mr. Igor Sirotkin, Deputy Director of the Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation (FSB), Head of the National Anti-Terrorism Committee (NAC) Central Office and NAC Deputy Chairman. The meeting was co-chaired by the Permanent Representative of Peru as Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Committee and the Permanent Representative of Kazakhstan as Chair of the two sanctions committees.

Mr. Sirotkin briefed the three Committees, as well as the invited entities, on the main outcomes of the XVIth Meeting of Heads of Special Services, Security Agencies, and Law Enforcement Organizations that took place in Krasnodar (Russia) in October 2017. Speaking of the Consolidated Assessment of Future Terrorist Threats agreed upon by the participants in the XVIth Meeting, Mr. Sirotkin underlined that although ISIL had sustained significant losses in terms of manpower in Syria and Iraq, it had transformed into a network-based organization. “ISIL’s cells sprawl across and beyond the Middle East towards Central and Southeastern Asia, and the African continent,” said Mr. Sirotkin. He also spoke about the surge of lone-actor terrorist acts in Europe, and the threat of foreign terrorist fighters taking advantage of migrant routes.

The XVIth Meeting focused on three areas: terrorism counteraction, terrorism prevention, and mitigation and elimination of consequences of terrorist attacks. Responding to questions from the Committees’ Members, Mr. Sirotkin stressed the importance of a comprehensive approach to countering terrorism, including preventive efforts of the relevant authorities in coordination with civil society. In the Russian Federation, such an approach is ensured by NAC and, over the past five years, resulted in particular in the disengagement from terrorist/extremist activity of over 300 individuals.

The annual Meeting also plays an important role in facilitating the sharing of intelligence information between relevant authorities. In this regard, NAC and FSB continue to maintain an International Counterterrorism Database (ICD), a project focused on developing a common antiterrorist information environment for security intelligence and law-enforcement operators worldwide.

“We must continue to strengthen our partnerships. We must ensure that, through our cooperation, collaboration, coordination, and joint efforts, our commitment and our capacities are stronger than before,” said the Chair of the Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) in his introductory remarks. He also welcomed the constructive dialogue between the Committee, CTED, and FSB aimed at addressing common terrorism-related concerns and enhancing international cooperation.

A day earlier, Mr. Sirotkin met with CTED’s Executive Director to discuss the cooperation between CTC/CTED and FSB, in which they agreed to continue and enhance the good working relationship between the two entities.